Some Things Don't Change
by LadyKatie
Summary: The first time Cuddy sees House after the events of the Season 5 finale. Heavy SPOILERS! House/Cuddy friendship mostly- possibly a hint of romance, depending on how you look at it. One-shot.


**Summary: The first time Cuddy sees House after the events of the Season 5 finale. Heavy SPOILERS! House/Cuddy friendship (mostly- possibly a hint of romance, depending on how you look at it.)**

**Disclaimer: House M.D. and the characters here belong to David Shore, Fox and others. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended.**

**Author's Note: I was working on something with House and Wilson and suddenly I was feeling some Huddy love. This was the result. Hope you enjoy!**

Some Things Don't Change  
By LadyKatie

Cuddy adjusted her jacket nervously before stepping into the visitor's room. She had signed the visitor's log and was told that House was waiting for her. Wilson said that he usually sat on the couch in the corner of the room, so she spotted him quickly. He looked good. Maybe a little thin, but he was alert and dressed. She had half expected him to be in slippers and a robe, but he looked almost normal. He had on a pair of dark blue jeans and one of his favorite black t-shirts and looked comfortable. Some of the other patients were more sloppily dressed, but not everyone. She shook her head at her own ridiculous thoughts. She was a doctor and she still had some crazy, movie version of a mental institution in her mind, expecting a bunch of drooling, unwashed crazy people in pajamas. She needed to get it together; House would see through her pathetic attempt at bravery in seconds and mock her for her nervousness.

He looked up as she approached. She tried to give him a big smile, but she could tell by his raised eyebrows that he saw through her façade and she gave up. She sat down on the couch a reasonable distance from him. He was looking at her expectantly. After all, she was the one visiting, so she couldn't very well expect him to start the conversation.

"Wilson told you I was coming?"

"Yeah, he warned me," he replied flatly.

She frowned. "I told him I wouldn't if you didn't want me to. I don't want to make you uncomfortable."

"Relax. I told him it was okay. You worry too much."

She nodded, looking around the room. "So, uh, how is it here? I mean, do they treat you okay?"

"As if Wilson hasn't been giving you weekly reports."

He was actually. Wilson had visited each Saturday of the nine weeks that House spent in Mayfield and each time Cuddy had interrogated him for information. She had wanted to know how he was doing, but knew that her presence wasn't going to help him right away. House's breakdown had included a full hallucination of a night in bed with her. Her worst fear now was that seeing her again would cause some sort of relapse and destroy all the progress he'd made.

"The food sucks and the people are morons," he said suddenly.

"Hospital food always sucks and you think everyone is a moron."

"So by that logic, being here should be no big deal." He scowled at her as if _she_ were the moron.

"Of course not. You think I want you to be here? I want you out of here as soon as possible. And not just because I'm missing a department head. Although that's a good reason too. Foreman is doing okay I guess, but he's not you."

"I'm sure he's a lot better than me at the moment."

"Hallucinations aside, he doesn't come up with the answers as fast. A couple weeks ago he lost a patient."

"Well not everyone can be as perfect as me."

"I feel terrible about what happened," she blurted out. "You should have told me you were seeing hallucinations. Or Wilson should have."

"But then it would have made hallucinating sex with you so much less fulfilling."

There. It was out. He was the first one to say it. She blushed. What a way to address the elephant in the room.

"I'm sorry. I don't even know how much of your behavior was real and how much was just you getting sick. How long was this going on?"

"As far as I know just for a couple weeks before I came here."

"After Kutner died?"

House nodded.

"Well we didn't tell anyone what was going on. Your team has only been told that you have a medical condition, so when you come back everything can get back to normal."

House forced out a humorless laugh. "I didn't hire them because they're idiots. They will figure it out and if they don't I'll have to fire them all."

"Well if they've figured it out, they haven't said anything. And they won't. If they do,_ I'll_ fire them."

"And the rest of the hospital?"

"Well after your announcement in the lobby, I think they assume you were either fired or suspended."

"Aren't I?"

"Of course not." She paused uncertainly. "I just want you to get well. I know I _said_ you were fired that day, but… you wouldn't have done all of that if you were in your right mind."

Now he raised an eyebrow, amused.

"Well, maybe you would have. I'd like to believe you would not have told the entire hospital you slept with me. And even your comment about Rachel wasn't really normal. You've made cheap shots about my being a mother, but that was pretty low. I should have figured that something was off right then."

She looked away and he frowned, running a quick diagnosis on her body language.

"No way are you actually feeling guilty for this."

"I do a little. I should notice when something is _that_ wrong with one of my doctors. And you… I think it's fair to say that I'm closer to you and Wilson than most of my staff. I feel bad that everything you do is summed up as 'it's just House being House' and that's it. Like we don't give you any more thought than that."

A thick silence fell between them. Most people around House knew that he didn't appreciate verbal expressions of caring. As a result far too many things went unsaid. Wilson was guilty of this too. Maybe, she thought, they should be said more often. Not all the time, but often enough so that he knows how much he means to them. Finally House cleared his throat awkwardly.

"It, uh, sucks that you had to get dragged into my break down."

She got it. That was the only kind of apology that he was capable of giving right now. "It's not your fault. You were sick."

"Still…"

"If it makes you feel any better, I save face by your long absence. To everyone at work, it looks like I'm being tough on you. And as far as you and I go, well I don't see any reason why this should affect how we work together. We can go back a bit and pretend like those last few weeks didn't happen."

"So you still have the hots for me."

"What? No," she said, immediately flustered. If this was normal House she would know exactly how to proceed. She didn't know how to navigate these waters now. Was he serious? Was it just his normal flirting? Maybe Wilson was wrong about him being ready to see her. Maybe this was too much. "No, that is _not_ what this is about."

"You did though before I went crazy and started announcing fictional romances to the entire hospital."

She shook her head. "House, whatever I felt or feel for you is irrelevant right now. I want you to get better. Do my motives for wanting that matter?"

"I think they do." She cocked her head to the side and he continued. "I am, after all, in a fragile mental state. If I think you're only here because you want me back at work that could cause self esteem issues. On the other hand, if I think you just want into my pants then I might think that I'm just some pathetic sex slave." He paused for effect. "Actually, I could live with that."

She rolled her eyes affectionately. At least that last bit seemed like the same House she knew. "You're incorrigible."

"So is that a yes? You do still have the hots for me?"

"It means that… I miss you. I care about you as a friend and as an employee and I'm glad that you're doing better."

"So you want to have sex? I think there's an empty janitor's closet around here somewhere."

"I'm not going to have sex with you," she said, laughing nervously. Was he serious? Was he still completely out of his mind? She honestly couldn't tell. He wasn't leering at her the way he normally would when making his inappropriate comments.

"Ever?"

"Do you really expect me to answer that? You're in a psychiatric hospital. I don't think now is the time to negotiate our relationship."

"You started it."

"I only said I was going to forget about your hospital lobby announcement," she explained as clearly as she could. It felt like she was talking to a child instead of the most intelligent man she knew. "Nothing else is on the table."

A sly smile spread across his lips and she realized he had just been screwing with her. But before she could get upset at being so easily fooled, she caught the twinkle in his eyes. They were crystal clear, like two blue diamonds and it took her breath away. He was really enjoying this. And for the first time he was free of narcotics and appeared to be feeling good. There was still pain; she knew the pain would always be there. But the pain wasn't the only thing. It wasn't all-consuming. And maybe, if the pain had faded to the background, he could be happy.

He was laughing now at her frustration. She shook her head, smiling.

"You're a bastard."

He shrugged nonchalantly. "Some things don't change."


End file.
